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Credit Card Processing: Beat the System by Passing Processing Fees to Customers
Imposing surcharges on credit card transactions is illegal, and
it will only lead to problems. The secret to beating the credit
card processing system is not charging more for credit card
sales, but instead is charging less for cash sales. It may...
Customer Service - A Lost Art?
Is customer service a lost art? Before you answer that question, take a moment and think about the last few times you have gone shopping or out to dinner. Okay, now that you have really thought about it, is your answer any different?
Why is...
Selling Sales to Customer Service Agents
The Sales Stigma
Somewhere along the way sales got a bad rap. I'm sure all of us
can relate to having dealt with a salesperson that made us
uncomfortable, pressured us into making a decision, or even
mislead us about the product or...
Who Comes First - The Customer or Employee?
The commonly held view that the customer comes first is worth a
close look. Think about the last time you received less than
satisfactory customer service. What caused it? Probably an
employee! Either directly, bad manners and a "don't...
Your Diamond Mine: The Lifetime Value of Your Customers
Copyright 2005 Kinesis, Inc.
In the early 1900s, Reverend Russell Conwell - founder of Temple
University - gave a popular speech called "Acres of Diamonds."
In it, he said:
"Your diamonds are not in far distant mountains or in...
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4 Customer Service Mistakes Companies Should Avoid Making
1) Being placed on hold endlessly. Don't you just love it when you call a company and they place you on hold, leaving you to listen to their latest on-hold, recorded sales pitch, over and over again. Would you think it normal business practice for a retail store clerk to ask you to "wait a minute" while they disappeared into the back of the store for ten, fifteen, thirty minutes or longer? People do things over the phone that they would never do in person. It's bad business either way to leave a customer hanging without at least coming back to let the customer know how much longer they'll be holding.
2) Getting rude with a customer. As the saying goes, even if the customer's wrong, the customer's always right. There's never any reason to get rude with a customer. If a customer gets rude with you, let them blow off steam and remember that their behavior is not an attack directed against you personally. Always keep in mind that as long as you remain calm and in control, you can address the reason behind the customer's anger.
3) Ignoring a problem. Ignoring a customer's problem won't make it go away. The same can be said of fixes that work for the company but not for the customer. Some customers have problems with a service or product that don't fit comfortably into any category. Those are the problems that need special attention, not standard responses. Too many companies ignore this and try to use the "one size fits all" method of complaint resolution. Companies have to realize
that their policy must fit the customer's needs, not the other way around.
4) Making the customer jump through hoops for a refund or exchange. I recently had to return a product to a national bookstore chain. Before the clerk refunded me, she asked me for all sorts of personal information. I refused to give this information. I explained that I hadn't given this information out when I made the original purchase, and didn't see the purpose in giving it out to get my money refunded. After 15 minutes and a visit from the store manager, they finally relented and gave me my refund. The time spent waiting in line, plus the time spent to get my refund, added up to 20 minutes. This company wasted 20 minutes of a customer's time, all in the effort to get information. If you have to disregard your customer's time in order to gather a marketing profile, you're defeating your long-term marketing goal, which is to retain a satisfied customer base that makes repeat purchases.
Russ Mate is President of MateMedia, Inc.
www.matemediainc.com
sales@matemediainc.com
Your Partner on the Web
Toll Free 1-877-309-7521
MateMedia offers the following services:
Web Hosting
Web Design & Development
Search Engine Optimization
Domain Name Registration
webmaster@matemediainc.com
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Help | IndyStar.com |
Customer Service • Terms of Service • Send feedback about IndyStar.com • Subscribe Now • Jobs with us. Use of this site signifies your agreement to the ... |
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